How the CW Copes With Growing Pains

Audience Treads Water,
Network's Holes Loom;
'Grace Period Is Done'

When CBS and Warner Bros. unveiled plans for the CW broadcast network in January 2006, they described it as a slam dunk -- a venture that both companies promised would be "profitable from day one."

But six months after it launched, the upstart network has yet to turn a profit, while heavily hyped shows such as Chris Rock's "Everybody Hates Chris" are struggling in the ratings. Next season, the network may have to cope with the loss of its popular long-running series "Gilmore Girls," due to the...